courtney dudley | ChinaShop

Gallery Music Oh Land Brings it “Home”

April 7, 2011 - 11:04 am

Danish electro-pop singer and songwriter Nanna Øland Fabricius, AKA Oh Land, was the topic of much buzzing conversation at this years SXSW. She played a handful of shows during the festival and then turned around and played a four night residency at NYC’s Charles Bank Gallery in Soho in tandem with an art installation by artist Eske Kath.

Backed by a string quartet, keyboardist and drummer, Oh Land performed a thirty minute set to a packed gallery on a stage surrounded by art similar to what appears on her album cover. The set was obviously a collaboration between the two Danes– Oh Land’s characteristic white balloons made an appearance (they are the backdrop for her video ‘Wolf & I’) but were modified with projections of faces, planets, ballet dancers (Oh Land used to dance before an injury ended her career) and other peculiar images.

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Music The Majestic Mister Heavenly

by Courtney Dudley

March 25, 2011 - 8:13 am

Lets define the term “Supergroup”. Webster defines it very narrowly as “A rock group made up of prominent former members of other rock groups; also an extremely successful rock group.”

This definition would cover three of Mister Heavenly’s four members – Honus Honus of Man Man on keys and vocals, Nicholas Thorburn of Unicorns and Islands on vocals and guitar while Modest Mouse drummer Joe Plummer keeps time.

But how to place our fourth member? Did anyone even know he could play instruments? I guess he sang a little in Juno… Yes, thats right. Actor Michael Cera has picked up a bass and is touring with some of the most talented musicians alive.

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Gallery Music Astronautalis at Metropolis (say that 5 times fast)

by Courtney Dudley

March 24, 2011 - 9:48 am

Andy Bothwell, known to many as the MC ‘Astronautalis’, played a whole bunch of shows during SXSW 2011, and I was lucky enough to make it to the very last one. The show was held pool side at Metropolis Apartments. If you went to school or live in Austin, you’ve no doubt visited or at least seen the tacky, brightly painted complex– lets just say it’s probably not any musicians first choice venue.

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Music Walking Degeneration Street with The Dears

by Courtney Dudley

March 20, 2011 - 1:20 pm

So if you’re not from Canada, you probably haven’t heard of this band. However, if you are from Canada, The Dears are probably your favorite indie rock outfit on the face of this earth. They’ve put out a solid five albums since 2000 and their newest, Degeneration Street, dropped early 2011.

Their Wednesday night show was held in my least favorite Austin nightclub, normally reserved for the just-turned-twenty-one/kamikaze-shot-taking/street-brawl-starting crowd, but as soon as The Dears took the stage I forgot all about the petrified puke smell and was transported to a place where funk, rock, pop and electronic sounds live happily in a big music commune in the sky. We’ll call it funrock-electro-op heaven, for short.

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Gallery Music The Soul of Shoes: Talib Kweli at Sneaker Palooza

by Courtney Dudley

March 16, 2011 - 12:16 pm

Surrounded by a giant kid friendly map of Texas, flood control interactive computers, and a dinosaur bone reconstruction exhibit, Talib Kweli stood wiping sweat from his brow and deciding where to eat with friends. Realizing that not much was open in San Antonio, TX at midnight on a Sunday, they joked about heading down to the local Shoneys.

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Music Matthew Dear Takes Williamsburg

by Courtney Dudley

December 2, 2010 - 12:07 pm

At first I was hesitant to make the comparison between Matthew Dear and David Byrne, but I’ve been listening to his discography all morning and I’m gonna stand by my guns. Like at the end of “Psycho Killer,” when Byrne makes his “Ay ay ay ay ay” noise. Or the “Ahh ha ha ha” in “Girlfriend is Better.” Well, Dear makes noises like that, but trips them out with fancy electro-pop reverb while playing the guitar, all with a full band behind him. Furthermore, Dear’s music, like that of Talking Heads, is experimental and inaccessible enough to appeal only to a progressive crowd—a little pretentious, even—while exhibiting real creativity and talent. The pretentiousness, in the end, is well earned.

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Fashion Housing Works 7th Annual Fashion for Action Event

by Carrie Tucker and Courtney Dudley

November 22, 2010 - 12:44 pm

“Where’s the Marc Jacobs?” a frantic fashionista yelled from across the room, while sockless Thom Browne groupies modeled button-ups and demanded, “Is purple my color?” People were indeed changing in the aisles, despite the available dressing rooms (sample sale habits die hard); at one point we tried to add a fellow shopper’s unattended coat to our pile of wares. Oops! Welcome to the Housing Works 7th annual Fashion for Action sample sale, which kicked off this past weekend in Housing Works’ Chelsea location with cute fashion kids, plenty of booze, and a store full of primo merchandise.

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Art/Design Gallery Levi’s Photo Workshop: 1001 Images

by Carrie Tucker

October 29, 2010 - 11:36 am

They are known as the “photo inept”, identified by the lack of quality images on their blogs/Facebook/Twitpics. iPhone’s Hipstamatic – as well as any simple photo-editing tool – is their best friend. They try to pass off head-chopping as “intentional” and red eyes as “arty”. Beautiful images are a happy accident, akin to winning on a scratch-off lottery ticket.

But novices rejoice – you can hone your skills at the Levi’s Photo Workshop, running now through December 18th. Not just for the individual who salivates over a 1920s Leica Compur, the temporary community space in Manhattan’s Soho is hosting an array of exhibition openings, parties, lectures and educational workshops centered on photography. Vintage cameras, a professional photo studio, and a variety of photo printers (like my fave, the t-shirt screening Zazzle Apparel Printer) are all available for use by pros and amateurs alike – the space is open to everyone. Bumbling photogs, don’t stress – workshop employees are there to help with your gear, set-up, and printing.

Oh, did we mention it’s all free?

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Music Raver Chic At The Electric Zoo

by Courtney Dudley

September 9, 2010 - 2:06 pm

If you thought raver style went out with the 90’s, you are wrong. It still exists and is going strong, as exhibited this weekend at New York’s Electric Zoo. There was a strong showing of the favorites– tons of neon, beaded bracelets and so, so much glitter. But it seems 2010’s ravers are taking it to the next level by mixing current trends with old electro staples.

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Music Welcome To The Electric Zoo

by Courtney Dudley

September 9, 2010 - 1:10 pm

There was music, there was food, there was art and revelry. All the makings for a fabulous music festival came together and delivered. With 4 different stages, each boasting their own lineup, Randalls Island park isnt as big as some of the other large festivals I’ve attended (Austin City Limits, cough, cough) so you could easily dart from one stage to another and catch all the acts. And speaking of the acts, wow, what a lineup.

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